Brands of Paint for Sealers

[SkeptiBee]

I'm gearing up to start working on the new viv this weekend but I still need to snag a few more critical items. One of which is paint to seal up the interior of the viv.

So what paint did you use?

I am a painter (artistic) so I know there are paint brands that contain lead or other harmful chemicals. Did most of you grab craft paint to seal the inside of the wood? If so, what brand did you use? Most of the stuff at the hardware store all has cautions and warnings that if dry paint flecks, there is risk of lead poisoning. Given that I'm trying to minimize risk for the Herms monster, I'd like to get some ideas on what others have used.

 

[brittani299]

I used shellac paint sealer. It is good because it is water based and safe for pets and kids. It was pretty cheap to only $17 for a gallon. I had to buy it at ACE though because Home Depot didnt sell it. Here is how my cage turned out

 

[Lenewen]

I can't remember the brand we used but it is water-based. I found water based paint and sealers were the most safe. Here's how ours turned out:

(It's actually 3 levels, I only have two captured in this shot )

 

[w0554096]

Lots of people use Modge Podge or Minwax polyurethane for sealing. You can also make your own Modge Podge type sealant with Elmer's school glue diluted with water. Much cheaper than Modge Podge.

 

[Lenewen]

The only problem with mod podge is it's thick and slick. If you keep it off the cage floors, you should be fine. But if it's put on the floor, your beardie will have little to no grip when walking. Using regular seal may be more pricey but it has a much nicer finish than mod podge.

As far as the elmer's glue trick, be careful with that too. It doesn't hold up like regular paint sealing does. I have done this with homemade rock caves and it didn't come out nearly as nice as the mod podge.